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TSA Agent Accused Of Stealing $100 From Passenger’s Wallet

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LOS ANGELES (CBS) — Authorities say a Transportation Security Administration officer was arrested at Los Angeles International Airport after being accused of stealing $100 from a passenger.

Clyde Reese, 47, of Gardena, was arrested on suspicion of theft about 8 a.m. Friday and booked at the 77th Street Station in response to an airline passenger complaint in Terminal 5, Los Angeles Airport police Sgt. Karla Ortiz told the Daily Breeze.

The victim, who wasn’t identified, said he put his wallet and other items in a bin and passed it through the X-ray machine, and Reese said it needed to go through a second time, Ortiz said.

When the bin emerged, the victim said his wallet was open and his credit cards were scattered inside, Ortiz said. She told the Daily Breeze the victim said his boss gave him $500 for expenses and $100 was missing.

TSA spokesman Nico Melendez issued a statement, saying the agency “holds its employees to the highest ethical standards and has a zero tolerance for theft.”

“In cases involving theft on duty, it is agency policy to remove the officer immediately from screening duties and terminate the officer from employment,” Melendez said.